The 35 days that have elapsed since the coup that ousted a democratically-elected leader have been both a long and short time for the man behind it.

General Sonthi Boonyaratglin - the self-proclaimed "amateur" coup-maker - has confessed he has endured intense pressure from the left, right and centre.

Yet he wished he had more time to search for evidence of graft that could give the controversial seizure of power some legitimacy.

At an interview with Nation Group editors on Tuesday, the general had some bad news for opponents of Thaksin Shinawatra.

The post-coup investigation so far has uncovered no solid links between the overthrown leader and major corruption scandals.

The shocking admission came at a time when the coup leaders, the Council for National Security (CNS), is trapped between various forces.

There are those who want to see the assets probe proceed fairly and in accordance with civil-rights standards, those who want the CNS to be ruthless and swift and make good use of the state power it grabbed and those who simply want to see how the junta can change Thailand's political life after one month.

"Thai people are not easy to please," Sonthi said. That may fast become an understatement if those wanting to know why the coup was necessary in the first place are not given a good reason soon.

"We have tried to abide by the law and take all parties' concerns into consideration. For example, the international community is watching to see whether human rights and civil liberties are being violated [as part of the assets probe]," he said. "I know how the people feel. I guess I feel the same way when I watch soccer. I am always frustrated when waiting for my team to score and feel like getting on the field and playing myself."

Massive corruption was one of the main reasons cited for the coup. In 1991, the military ousted the Chatichai Choonhavan government on similar grounds. But, then, the generals put the overthrown prime minister and notorious Cabinet members to summary investigation along with other harsh measures such as asset freezes.

With Thaksin's immense popularity and intense international scrutiny, the CNS task is more difficult and delicate than that of the National Peacekeeping Council that took power from Chatichai. And, Sonthi implied Thaksin was smart in covering traces of graft.

"It will be difficult to implicate him [in major corruption cases]," the CNS head said. He added that while people called for the freezing of Thaksin's conventional financial assets and those of his family and relatives, real proof of corruption may lie in "something hidden in some corners of his home".

The hidden wealth, Sonthi insisted, was vast enough to fund a political comeback.

The general reiterated the intention of CNS was to keep martial law in place until such a threat was at least minimised.

"I can't give you the exact timing of the lifting the martial law. Please let me just say we will do it as soon as possible, although we can right away ease certain related measures," he said.

And the most important message to Thaksin at the moment was underlined: You can't come home until martial law is lifted.

"He has representatives here and his party has found a new leader now," Sonthi said. "If he's really concerned about the country, he shouldn't try to come back at present. He should use the phone if there's something urgent."

Asked what would happen if Thaksin "just got on the plane and flew here" Sonthi replied: "It wouldn't be allowed to land."

During the two-hour interview, the CNS chief revealed tales of mistrust between him and the former prime minister. The general disclosed that during their recent visit to Burma shortly before the coup, he had his men sneak a gun onto their C-130 plane for self-protection.

Asked what made him do that and what he thought Thaksin was plotting, Sonthi said: "I don't know. I was just being alert. On the plane, I sat near the entrance to the cockpit, a location where I could know quickly if something was about to happen. I had been told to wear my uniform but I wore a suit which better covered what I wanted to cover."

He believed Thaksin would not give up easily, citing lingering "undercurrents" he said were the main reason why the martial law had to stay for now. "We know who they are and what they are up to," he said, adding that the CNS "does not mind" sincere ideological attacks or criticism expressed through the media.

The new government's efforts to reach out to former communist insurgents were part of a plan to reunite Thailand and neutralise any possible comeback ploy by Thaksin.

"Our strategy is to make [his] money worthless and turn our lesser foes into our friends," Sonthi said. "For people who used to have so much and lose it so swiftly, it's hard to come to terms with that, and they may do everything necessary to get it all back."

He repeated the CNS pledge that power would be returned to the people soon. "The torch will surely be relayed and when that happens the people shall receive it with a firm understanding of why this had to happen and of not only their rights but also their duties as Thai citizens," Sonthi said.